Third Community-Based Rural Development Project

Lead Agency:

UNDP

Organization:

Ministry of Environment

SLM FOCAL POINT

Michel Tankoano

Country Focal Point:

Michel Tankoano

Contact Information:

mjtankoano@yahoo.fr

Project Development Objective (s)

The objective of the Project is to enhance the capacity of rural communities and decentralized institutions for the implementation of local development plans that promote sustainable land and natural resources management and productive investments at commune level. Triggers from Phase 2 to Phase 3 have been met. Phase 3 will therefore consolidate the accomplishments of Phase I and 2 of the Community Based Rural Development Program. It will enhance the capacity of rural communities and decentralized institutions for the implementation of local development plans that promote sustainable land and natural resources management and productive investments at commune level. This will be achieved by (i) pursuing and completing the work on institutional development and capacity building initiated in Phase 1 and 2; (ii) implementing the rural land tenure reform law which was promulgated under Phase 2 and enhancing local dispute resolution; and (iii) social, economic and environmental investments at the commune level to reach a sustainable level; while promoting environmental sustainability in the targeted zones. Phase 3 will provide 302 rural communes and the 13 regional communes with capacity building to enable them to take the lead in local development challenges and to govern in a participatory and transparent manner. Project Components Based on the PDO of Phase 3 and the achievements and design of earlier Phases of the Program, the proposed project will have five components:

The first component of Phase 3 aims to enhance local governance and improve local development planning and management by local governments at all levels. It will build on achievements from earlier Phases by deepening technical and capacity building for local stakeholders. Under the project, local governments will develop new Communal Development Plans (Plan communal de developpement, PCD), prepare Annual Investment Plans (Programme annuel d’investissements, PAI) and identify local development projects in strategic, holistic and multi-sectoral manner in collaboration with local communities, local communes, deconcentrated technical services, the private sector and civil society. The component’s capacity building activities will also provide local actors (including municipal councilors, CVD representatives, civil society, service providers and deconcentrated technical services) with the necessary tools to implement, monitor and maintain local development investments. Component one is comprised of four sub-components:

Component 2: Implementation of the Rural Land Legislation and Enhancement of Local Dispute Resolution Mechanisms

With the legal and regulatory framework for land tenure now in place from earlier Phases, the component seeks to support the implementation of the land tenure policy and law. This would be pursued through: (i) the establishment and operation of rural land tenure services (services fonciers ruraux – SFR) at commune level, village land tenure commissions (les commissions foncieres villageoises) and village conciliation commissions (les commissions de conciliation fonciere villageoise); (ii) land titling operations; (iii) strengthening of capacity of local actors and rural communes to carry out land titling processes efficiently and transparently; and iv) dissemination of the law to increase men, women and illiterates’ awareness about their rights, and pave the way for a more gender-balanced access to land. This component will also enhance the functioning of the communal SFRs by strengthening their capacity with human resources and equipment. The project will also strengthen land security processes through: (i) diagnostic land tenure studies linked to the revision of PCDs; (ii) the elaboration of land tenure charters; (iii) elaboration of land tenure charters (chartes foncieres locales) and other documentation provided for by the Rural Land Legislation such as registration of usufruct rights (attestation de possession fonciere rurale); (iv) the regularization of land set aside for investment by the local government; and (v) strengthening the capacity of local actors to conciliate disputes related to land tenure.

Component 3: Local and Regional Investments

Component three will support communes in promoting socio-economic growth and sustainable development through the financing of strategic local development investments, for all the 302 rural communes in the 13 regions. The component will finance micro-projects for: (i) social, environmental, and economic investments. Since communities gave greater priority to social investments during the first two Phases of CBRD, Phase 3 of the project will particularly focus on economic investments to promote local economic growth and revenue generation and NRM/environmental investments which are needed to ensure sustainable rural development.

Component 4: Sustainable Land and Forestry Management

This component aims to support restoration and protection of natural resources, forest and biodiversity in the larger ecosystem landscape related to agricultural expansion. It will include natural resource management and protection of select ecosystems beyond the community-based investments of component 3 and capacity building of component 1 above. The Government has identified the PONASI ecological complex (covering protected areas of Po, Nazinga and Sissili) in the south center of the country as a priority to ensure that agricultural productivity and livestock management are pursued sustainably in the context of these ecosystems, protected areas and reserves. Three other ecological zones and regions will also be targeted for SLWM, namely the Nazinon watershed, the Eastern region and the Plateau Central Region in the north.

Component 5: Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation

This component’s objective is to ensure that the project components and activities will be effectively carried out, coordinated, monitored and regularly evaluated. It will comprise (i) the coordination and efficient administrative, technical and financial management of the project and (ii) the M&E of the performance, results, and impacts of the project (see Annex 3). In order to enhance the governance of project management, a series of initiatives will be carried out and will include: (i) involvement of civil society in the supervision and monitoring of the project; (ii) creation of a project website to enhance access to information and transparency; and (iii) introduction of a formal project complaints handling mechanism.